Nneka's Notes from the East Side

 Taking in the enchanting scenery in Venice, Italy

Hello Again, or should I say Pronto, Bon journo, Guten Tag, or simply, my head hurts! Since my last notes I have experienced language overload, and yes, steam is pouring out from my ears! Despite my speaking Spanish and Portuguese, I found myself having to adapt to national variations of these languages; For example, Catalan spoken in Barcelona. Even now, I am struggling to type this from a keyboard in Slovenia, which has completely different symbols than I am accustomed to. So now I am pulling my braids out trying to make meaning of this!

Since splitting up with Mayerling in London, I arrived in chaotic Naples, Italy to sweltering temperatures of 38° Celsius (100º Fahrenheit). I was picked up at the airport by the fun and feisty Fabi and immediately taken on a tour of the city.

I swear, my life flashed before my eyes careening down the unmarked roads. The hectic driving and constant traffic jams make Los Angeles gridlock seem mild. I felt as if I was involved in a high-speed police car chase, as there are few traffic lights and no clearly marked lanes, so everyone just makes up their own rules. I even witnessed a car engulf in flames after careening off of the main road. I was ecstatic when we arrived at the Capurros' spacious summer home in Salerno, and embarked upon a day of romance with my Italian Stallion. We had kept in constant contact over the past year, and finally had time alone to further explore our emotions and physical connection. In the pastel colored room Fabi professed his love for me and astounded me further by saying "I want to be your Marido, and be with you forever." I thought long and hard about his proposal, knowing that although our connection was growing, I still had unfinished business to attend to with James - who I would soon be meeting. After watching Fabi cook Spaghetti with presunto and fresh mozzarella balls still drowned in water; then thoroughly clean the kitchen wearing only a towel around his waist, I was mesmerized as his bulging pectorals flexed while he worked. We spent the rest of the day and night fully consumed in the depths of each others passion.

Gotta love a man who knows his way around a 

kitchen!

The next day we finally left the house. I was charmed by the quiet, clean beaches, and especially by the old fountains along the roads where one can stop to fill a water jug with clean, cold, fresh water...for free. Although some of these fountains date back centuries, many of them actually produce the same water that is bottled and sold in stores. Later that day I was overwhelmed with emotion as I was smothered with hugs and kisses from Fabi’s family upon arrival at their winter home in Naples. I instantly felt like part of the family and was welcomed with more food than I could ever consume. We would sit at the table for hours, while waiting for the second, third and fourth courses to arrive. Fabi's mom even cooked one of my favorite dishes after taking me on a special shopping trip for all the ingredients. She prepared what turned out to be the best pasta I've ever had with frutti di mare (fresh seafood). For the second course we were served some sort of baked fish with a salad; then a bucket of fresh oysters followed by a fruit salad and finally desert. As soon as we would finish one plate, she would immediately serve the next course! I could barely squeeze into my jeans only days after my arrival! Just like in the movies, this home is filled with laughter, love and great food. Fabiano and his brother Francesco later took me on a motorcycle ride to see the rest of the city, before the whole family accompanied me to the train station with tear filled eyes.

I met a handful of friendly young travelers during a three-hour train ride to a station in Rome, where another local friend picked me up. Directly from the train station we went out for drinks and yes...salsa dancing... Yippee! I try to make it a point to check out local salsa clubs when I travel.

I was enchanted at the sight of the large ballroom floor set up in the center of a lush, green park; And even more delighted at the smell of barbeque on the grill during the late night hour. Although the heat was not as sweltering as in Naples, Rome was about 82° Fahrenheit at night. Which I learned is why much of the nightlife is held outdoors during the summer. After napping through the hour ride to my friends’ house in the mountains, far from the city, I decided to explore Rome on my own and find other accommodations. Because I had to travel so far from the mountains to the city, I managed to figure out the subway and train system within hours and felt extremely welcome and at home. Rome is probably the only European city for which I have only heard rave reviews, and now I know why. I fell in love with this beautiful, historically rich city with its charming, warm people.

After agonizing over having to leave Rome (I could easily live here), I took a horribly uncomfortable night train to the Northern city of Milan. The train ride was 8 1/2 hours (when it should have only taken five hours), and I was miserably cramped into a car with five other people. One of whom I'm sure was schizophrenic and another who passed gas the entire night! So obviously I wasn't able to get any sleep. At dawn upon arrival in Milan, I reunited with my old flame James (who had just driven four hours from Switzerland) and picked me up in a rented Volkswagen sedan. He even showed up with lunch that he prepared to suit my finicky taste buds. We drove three hours to the island of Venice, which sits only two feet above sea level. Much of the city can only be accessed via waterway in canal boats operated by the famed Gondoliers, dressed in black and white striped shirts, barefoot, with cut off pants. Everywhere there was art, music, live theater and endless views of boats navigating the torrid, green sea.

Just as torrid as the sea around us, our relationship took a turbulent turn almost from the start. When I last saw James we spent Christmas and New Years together traveling through the enchanting jungles and pristine beaches of Thailand. The two weeks we spent alone were full of emotion, romance and a mind-blowing, cosmic physical connection that I had never experienced with anyone before. I think my first mistake may have been having unrealistic expectations of reliving our euphoric experience in Thailand. James began to drive me crazy the moment he fell asleep on what should have been a romantic ride through Venice’s' canals. It wasn't long before my aggressive, confrontational nature began to irritate him and so an argument ensued. Unfortunately, our nasty fighting carried on for days, until the morning of my birthday. Because we were barely speaking, I could hardly look him in the eye, much less be physically intimate with him. After having spent more than six months apart, I never felt more distant from him than I did at this moment when we were finally in close proximity of one another. The tension grew to such heights, that he and I contemplated canceling our travel plans and parting our separate ways.

After only one day in Venice, James and I drove to Chioggia, Italy. Another island 100 kilometers south of Venice. I had never heard of this place, but was surprised to discover it is a beach town full of small resorts and mobile park campsites. People drive from all over Europe to camp out at beach side mobile parks that have family oriented amusement activities in close proximity. After arriving too late to be able to find accommodations, we had no choice but to sleep beneath the stars in a tent that James brilliantly thought might come in handy. He also intuitively thought to bring along an extra air mattress for me. Despite having the mattress, I felt as if I had slept on a bed of nails. So after a rough night of little sleep, I was awaken by a strong ocean breeze and hunger pangs. James and I picked up new kite surf equipment then hung out at the beach famed for its wind surfers. Later that afternoon, we drove another four hours to freezing Slovenia, once part of the former Yugoslavia. Upon arrival, we went trekking into the depths of the Postjona cave, where temperatures reached a low of 6° Celsius, 42º Fahrenheit. This country is full of competitive cyclists, professional rock climbers and other adventurous outdoors-men and women. 

Paddling along raging rapids inside of freezing, dark cave!

 Next we will drive to Croatia, which is known for it's waterfall-filled natural parks, and turquoise sea. Assuming that we are able to work through our differences and find a way to get along, next weeks agenda will be to drive back to Switzerland, fly to Egypt then set sail for the South Pacific Sea.